As the image would suggest above the title, Hal can be a lifesaver for anyone who uses it. Here’s another story in my life as a Hal…

If you are familiar with Hal (by now), you know that it is an encrypted, text-based app that renders Personal Assistant services of all kinds. As you might imagine, when you give your customers all kinds of choices to consider, they will generally take you up on it to save time, resources — or because they love the ease and convenience of working with a human being that can serve their needs on their own timeline. I have had many such requests over the past 18 months as a Hal, and the requests may surprise you..however, they may also delight you as well!

One of my all time favorite scenarios posed a particularly unusual challenge: the customer tried the free trial for Hal because they were frustrated with using tools like the Google Assistant, Siri, and Alexa to come up with a name for the restaurant that they had just started. They were looking for something much more creative than any artificial intelligence could provide. In other words, the answers that were provided by the “automated assistants” they had tried were really subpar or had no context at all. Although Hal covers a lot of ground for lending assistance to customers, this is also the kind of request the Hal is made for! It definitely did not seem standard based on other requests I fulfilled up to that point, but it was certainly fun to pursue with a customer.

As usual, I had a moment to reply and acknowledge that I saw the customer’s text. All they knew up to that point is that “Hal” (aka me) was online to help them. Shortly thereafter, the request came in about asking to help them name their new restaurant. The conversation looked a little like this:

Hal (aka Me): Just a sec…I’m here…how can I help you?

Customer: I need a new name for my restaurant.

Hal: That sounds like fun to work on! There are a number of options we can pursue. Can I ask what type of cuisine that you serve?

Customer: Mostly tapas. And a lot of our dishes have a Latin influence. And we also want a lively bar crowd too, so we need to name it something that is catchy.

Hal: OK. When you say “catchy” did you mean chic & upscale, local neighborhood bar-ish (aka Cheers), or something silly but memorable (The Office,Wild Thyme Cuisine)?

Customer: I actually like the idea of someone calling a friend or a partner from the restaurant and be like “I’m running late at The Office, but I’ll meet you in 45 minutes”! LOL. So I guess silly can be cool too. But I think I would like something that sounds cool, like an Italian or Latin word that’s memorable.

Hal: OK. Here’s a few that I came up with: El Huerto Secreto “The Secret Garden”, La impresión “Excelente” or “The Excellent Impression”, El Gastrónomo “The Gourmet”, El Arte de los Sabores “The Art of Flavors”. How do these sound to you?

Customer: That’s a good start, Hal, but I think I like more of a one-word name now that I see these choices. I like that these were all Latin words though.

Hal: OK. Here’s a few that are only one word: Marzapan “Marzipan”, Encantado “Charmed”, Antojo “Craving”, Paella “Paella”, Delicioso.“Delicious”, Mucho “Too Much”. How are those landing?

Customer: Wow, you’ve given me so many good options. But I’m wondering if I shouldn’t showcase the address and the area it’s located in more than the making a statement about the cuisine or the experience. That area is really up and coming where we live, so maybe consider that as another cool way to name the restaurant, Hal. The address is 111 Colony Place.

Hal: OK. Let’s pivot! Are you thinking to incorporate the numbers or the street name…or do you have a nickname for that area, like SOHO?

Customer: Let’s try both options with the street name and the numbers and see how it sounds.

Hal: OK. How about these options: Uno Cubed, Colony Cuisine, Primero“First”, Placer “Pleasure”, Mesa 111 “Table 111”. How do those sound by comparison?

Customer: Hal! That’s it! Mesa 111! I love it! You are a lifesaver. We have been struggling with a name that we can all agree on for three days, but Mesa 111 sounds like it could be our top choice!

Hal: Terrific! And now that you have more a few to consider, (just in case some others don’t vote for Mesa 111), at least you have some new ideas to kick around with your team. Is there anything else I can help you with?

Customer: Not a thing. That was perfect. Five star service on this one, Hal!

Hal: Fantastic. And I’m so glad I could help you today. I’m always just a text away if you need more assistance. Thanks for using Hal today.

So as you can see from that example, Hal is among the most versatile personal assistants you can get, mainly because it uses the one “analog” device that most have dismissed: the human brain!

MAVRick